Xiang Mountain stretched across the northern bank of the Yu River, facing Mang Mountain across the water. But its terrain was much more treacherous than Mang Mountain. Its main eastern and western peaks rose over six to seven hundred zhang high. The mountain body stretched over three hundred li east to west, but only twenty to thirty li in north-south depth—an extremely elongated mountain body, hence also called Zhongtiao Mountain.
The Yu River descended from the western foothills of Zhongtiao Mountain. After merging with streams and rivers originating from the Loess Plateau like the Jing and Wei, it turned eastward from the southern foothills of Zhongtiao Mountain. The Fen River, flowing through Taiyuan Prefecture, Fenzhou, Jinzhou, and Puzhou, joined the Yu River from the northwestern foothills of Zhongtiao Mountain. Zhongtiao Mountain had an eastern branch—Wangwu Mountain. At this time, Mengzhou, where Zhao Mengji garrisoned over thirty thousand troops, was located at the eastern foothills of Wangwu Mountain.
In terms of strategic position, Xiang Mountain could be said to be a vital strongpoint overlooking southern Jin, blocking Guan and Yong to the east, and looking down on He and Huai to the south.
The eighteen prefectures and over ninety counties of the former Hedong Commandery—with Fen, Jin, Pu and other prefectures located in the river valley of the middle and lower Fen River—held nearly one-third of Hedong’s population and farmland. Including Taiyuan Prefecture in the middle reaches of the Fen River, population and farmland accounted for half of the former Hedong Commandery.
There was another point that military strategists and tacticians historically could not ignore.
The lake salt that had been developed on a large scale since pre-Qin times was produced at Hedong Salt Lake on the northern foothills of Xiang Mountain—also the most famous saltwater lake in the Central Plains region.
For hundreds of years, lake salt produced at Hedong Salt Lake had been transported and sold to Guan-Yong, He-Huai, Hedong and other places.
In the early years of the previous dynasty, salt households at the salt lake had already adopted salt field sun-drying methods to produce salt. At its peak, it produced over a million shi of lake salt annually. After the mid-period of the previous dynasty implemented monopoly sales, this saltwater lake stretching over sixty li east to west could deliver over a million strings of salt profits annually to the central authority.
When Jin occupied the salt lake, the salt profits once accounted for one-third of its central authority’s annual revenue.
The Hejin region spanning Jin and Pu prefectures had historically been a focal point of great wars between Liang and Jin. Besides the Fen River valley on the northern foothills of Zhongtiao Mountain easily threatening Jin’s core ruling areas directly, another reason was using warfare to reduce or even destroy the salt profits Jin could obtain from Hedong Salt Lake.
If Great Liang forces could insert into Zhongtiao Mountain and establish a foothold, their constraining effect on enemy forces would be immense. But the problem was that Liang and Jin had fought around Zhongtiao Mountain for thirty to forty years since before their founding. Countless fortifications were built in the mountains, all currently in enemy hands.
Also, because Zhongtiao Mountain was extremely elongated, backed by the Fen River valley to the north, this meant forces garrisoning Hejin to the north could reinforce mountain fortifications extremely easily.
If Han Qian now drew elite forces from Mang Mountain to force a crossing of the Yu River, unable to carry heavy war equipment to attack these fortifications, with footholds on the northern bank of the Yu River and areas for troop deployment too narrow, forcing an attack would inevitably result in severe casualties.
Even if they made tremendous sacrifices to hold one or two fortifications, it would be difficult to withstand enemy counterattacks from the north where they held advantages, and difficult to hold mountain fortifications.
Otherwise, over the past thirty to forty years, Liang forces would not have needed to bypass Xiang Mountain every time, crossing the Yu River from northern Huazhou to directly attack Jinzhou and Puzhou north of Xiang Mountain.
Just as Yin Peng was thinking this method of Han Qian’s was difficult to implement, he lowered his head to see the sand table had already piled up the Yu River, Mount Song, Mang Mountain, Xiang Mountain and other mountain and river topography extremely realistically. One could clearly see the distribution of fortifications in Xiang Mountain. Obviously Han Qian had been strategizing battle methods with the generals in the office hall all along. He thought to himself—the difficulties he could perceive, Han Qian and the generals obviously would not turn a blind eye to?
Yin Peng had just arrived and was unfamiliar with many circumstances, so he patiently listened first as Guo Que, Feng Xuan, Wen Bo, Chen Kun and other generals stood before the sand table discussing the next operational plan.
Currently, enemy forces garrisoning the Jin-Pu Hejin region and Zhongtiao Mountain were Tian Weiye’s forces plus over ten thousand elite Mengwu cavalry.
Tian Weiye had originally been Jin’s Luzhou Administrator. Under Zhu Yu’s Liang army assault, he defended Luzhou City for nearly a year, causing Zhu Yu to ultimately have his rear cut off by Zhu Rang, Wang Yuankui colluding with the Mengwu, leading to a series of disastrous defeats.
When Luzhou’s grain was exhausted, Tian Weiye surrendered the city to the Mengwu. Because his wife, children and clan were slaughtered by Jin’s Prince of Lu, he attacked Taiyuan City most fiercely. After that, as a vanguard army, he led forces to attack Guanzhong with cutting edge sharpness, ultimately capturing Yongzhou City regardless of casualties.
Originally the Mengwu wanted Tian Weiye to continue south to attack Hanzhong. But after Han Qian succeeded as Lord of Great Liang, Wusu Dashi and Xiao Yiqing adjusted strategy, having Wang Yuankui and Wang Xiaoxian defend the Yong-southern region, while transferring the most brilliant in merit Tian Weiye to Hejin, appointing him Hejin Military Commissioner.
Obviously Wusu Dashi and Xiao Yiqing had very early completely understood that the Meng army could never successfully capture the Heluo region. Then Xiang Mountain’s strategic position in the Liang-Meng war situation would thoroughly emerge.
However, Han Qian did not care how strong Tian Weiye and his forces’ combat capability was, nor how elite the ten thousand Meng cavalry garrisoned south of the Fen River under Tian Weiye’s control were, nor how brave and skilled in battle their commander Hehaishan was.
Since the mid-to-late period of the previous dynasty when warfare in Heluo and southern Jin gradually intensified, nearly a hundred years had seen forty to fifty fortified strongholds built in Xiang Mountain. But these small and medium-sized fortifications were mainly built in wide valleys and relatively gentle slopes, impossible to fill every peak ridge, every stream and valley of the over three hundred thirty li of elongated Xiang Mountain completely full without leaving any gaps.
Han Qian did not want Great Liang forces to forcefully attack these solid enemy fortifications in Xiang Mountain at this time. He wanted to break up forces into patrol units or even smaller groups to enter Xiang Mountain, seeking footholds in the gaps between enemy fortifications.
Xiang Mountain stretched over three hundred li east to west, with the widest north-south point only slightly over thirty li.
Such terrain characteristics meant that once gaining footholds in Xiang Mountain, threatening and harassing enemy production and garrison on the southern bank of the Fen River valley north of Xiang Mountain would be much easier.
Drilling into Xiang Mountain, they would subsequently continuously cross the Yu River, transporting supplies and craftsmen to the opposite bank, building small fortified bases in treacherous valleys and extraordinary peaks, forming an intermingled situation with enemy forces in Xiang Mountain where you have me in you and I have you in me, thereby pushing subsequent tug-of-war battles and stalemate warfare from the southern bank’s Mang Mountain and Hulaoguan line to the northern bank’s Xiang Mountain periphery.
Listening to Han Qian and the generals discussing word by word on the operational plan initially drafted by the Military Intelligence Staff Bureau, perfecting more details, Yin Peng suddenly recalled how the early Chishan Army held Mao Mountain and Fuyu Mountain to reverse Jinling’s situation, as well as numerous battle examples of the Tangyi Army gradually recovering Huaixi these years. He thought of the most advantageous combat method Han Qian had used these years—wasn’t it small troop groups dispersing to fight in mountain terrain?
This was undoubtedly also the best strategic and tactical choice under Great Liang’s current situation of desperately needing reorganization and recuperation—using a small number of elite forces to achieve containing, exhausting and consuming large-scale enemy forces.
Yin Peng also could not imagine what better methods enemy generals Tian Weiye and Hehaishan could have besides strengthening fortification construction north of Zhongtiao Mountain.
Since the Chishan Army period, the forces Han Qian led had excelled at mountain warfare, even more skilled at small troop groups persisting in long-term combat in complex terrain. This was directly and closely related to Han Qian’s early years massively absorbing stronghold forces, establishing himself in Xuzhou, excelling at operating mountainous terrain, and these years continuously training base-level military officers on a large scale.
Like Chen Jingzhou’s son Chen Yuanchen—as an early stronghold-faction member who arrived in Luoyang over a month before them, he was now directly serving as staff officer under Wen Bo’s command. All this could be said to be Great Liang forces’ advantage in this type of warfare.
Currently Great Liang’s strength was not yet sufficient, cavalry formations were limited, flanking and mobile warfare capability was weak. Naturally they should avoid fighting enemy forces in open terrain. But dispersing into complex mountainous terrain for combat not only maximally utilized their own advantages, but also prevented Mengwu cavalry advantages from being deployed…
The specific operational plan was for Wen Bo to lead Li Qi, Xue Chuan and other generals to execute from Mang Mountain, with Chen Kun at Hulaoguan and Lin Jiang leading naval brigades and pontoon bridge boats for coordinated operations. In the later period, newly formed infantry brigades and security brigades of the Jingzhao Defense Zone would enter Xiang Mountain for combat in rotational warfare form.
After discussing matters, Wang Jun rushed over from the medical camp. Seeing Yin Peng, she was very happy. At the banquet she asked many questions about circumstances of Wang and Yin family members after crossing the river.
Lu Ze was directly incorporated into the First Guard Brigade under Huo Li, serving as Deputy Brigade Commander—currently the Military Intelligence Staff Bureau was further perfecting new military unit organization. The highest-ranking generals directly controlling command authority in the army were designated as Regional (Army) Commanders. They also newly established Brigade Commanders as formal military officer positions to command brigade-level military units in combat. The status of Vice Commanders and Military Generals in the Liang army was relatively downgraded.
Yin Peng as an official of the Military Intelligence Staff Bureau was actually still an attendant military officer, remaining with Han Qian alongside Guo Que, Wang Zhe, Feng Yi and others to consult on military affairs. Huo Xiao, as a Wang clan member who joined the Tangyi Army in the first batch with Wang Jun, had served as Songyang County Magistrate after this year, responsible for widening the Songnan plank road. Currently the Songnan plank road widening project was completed. He had completed his duties well, so was transferred to Luoyang two days before Yin Peng and the others. His new position was serving as Luoyang County Magistrate under Jingzhao Prefecture Governor Zhou Dan.
“Wusu Dashi has issued decrees in Taiyuan. Mengwu tribes have already begun southern migration. The first troops have entered Shuozhou territory. Prefecture and county governments in Hejin, Guanzhong, Shangdang and other places have all begun occupying fields and residences, preparing to receive the southern migration of Mengwu tribes,” Han Qian personally introduced more of the situation to Yin Peng who had just arrived in Luoyang. “According to scouts who penetrated deep into regions north of Yunzhou to investigate military intelligence, this Mengwu southern migration mainly involves tribes belonging to the Thirteen Wings cavalry that have followed Wusu Dashi in conquering Yan-Yun, Bohai and Heshuo, Hedong these years. The population scale is expected to exceed six hundred thousand, accounting for approximately half of Mengwu core tribes. Currently, besides the fifty thousand cavalry of the Thirteen Wings that Wusu Dashi has already led into the Central Plains, among these five hundred thousand southern migrants, there are expected to be nearly fifty thousand cavalry skilled in riding and archery that Wusu Dashi can mobilize. This will be the military force Wusu Dashi subsequently uses to strengthen rule over prefectures and counties in Hedong, Guanzhong, Heshuo and other places…”
The over one hundred thousand Han forces Wusu Dashi had recruited in Yan-Yun and Bohai in recent years, plus Wang Yuankui, Tian Weiye, Zhao Mengji, Wang Xiaoxian and Eastern Liang Army forces, were already strong enough. Hearing now that with this autumn and winter’s massive southern migration of Mengwu tribes, Wusu Dashi would have another fifty thousand elite cavalry he could mobilize, Yin Peng felt a headache even for Han Qian.
Even if Wusu Dashi used these forces to strengthen rule over prefectures and counties in Hedong, Guanzhong, Heshuo and other places, he could also replace the Yan-Yun and Bohai Han forces previously deployed in these prefectures and counties, further strengthening the military blockade of Heluo.
At this time, launching Xiang Mountain penetration and tug-of-war operations this winter and autumn seemed highly significant. But simultaneously it meant that in the early period, various units rotating into Xiang Mountain for tug-of-war combat would become even more cruel and bloody.
“This is bad news, but also good news,” Han Qian evaluated this matter quite calmly, saying: “Though the decrees Wusu Dashi and Xiao Yiqing issued confiscate imperial estates and official fields of the former Jin state in various prefectures and counties to settle the southern migrating tribes, whether Wusu Dashi wants to use southern migrating tribes to actually rule these territories or maintain the high ratio military preparedness of drawing one soldier per tent, it is destined that these tribes moving south will forcibly occupy large amounts of land rich in water and grass, destined they will force large numbers of common people into slavery for them—when units engage in combat, they must also pay attention to distinguishing which among enemy forces we can alienate, incite or even win over and contact, and which need to be resolutely struck down and eliminated…”